Verification Policy and Procedures

When you complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) you may be selected by the U.S. Department of Education or by Northern New Mexico College for review in a process called verification. The student will be placed in one of the three (V1, V4 & V5) Verification Tracking Groups shown below.

As part of this process, the student must submit supporting documentation to the Financial Aid Office. These supporting documents and items being verified may include, but are not limited to:

IRS tax transcripts from the preceding tax year

Verification of untaxed income and benefits

Verification form to determine family size

Number of family members attending college

Each student selected for verification will be notified in writing of the specific group and documentation that must be submitted. Your financial aid status, including selection for verification, can also be viewed on the myNNMC web portal. During the verification process the Financial Aid Office will contact you by mail if clarification is needed on any of the data reported on the FAFSA. If corrections to your FAFSA are necessary, the Financial Aid Office will submit them to the U.S. Department of Education. The student will receive a corrected copy of the Student Aid Report (SAR) for review. Your financial aid award is subject to change if verification results in a change to your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). If your Title IV aid amounts change as a result of verification you will be notified by mail and may also view your award on the myNNMC web portal.

Upon receiving notification that you were selected for verification you should submit all requested documents to the Financial Aid Office as soon as you can. Students selected for verification will not receive a financial aid award letter until all requested documents are received and reviewed by the Financial Aid Office.

Verifications are completed in date order, meaning that the earlier your completed verification documents are received, the sooner your financial aid award can be completed. Verifications are completed within 14 working days from the receipt date of all required documentation.

Contact the Financial Aid Office at (505) 747-2128 if you have any questions regarding verification or any other aspect of the financial aid process.

Can I submit a personal copy of my federal tax return?
No. Schools are no longer allowed to accept a personal copy of the federal tax return from the student or parents (if required) for verification purposes. Either a tax transcript from the IRS or your FAFSA filed using the IRS Data Retrieval Too are the only two ways to verify tax data starting with the 2016-17 academic year. If you do not, or cannot use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, you will be required to obtain a tax transcript from the IRS.

How do I request an IRS tax transcript?
There are a few ways to get an IRS tax transcript: online at: www.irs.gov, by calling
1-800-908-9946, or by mailing or faxing the paper Form 4506T-EZ, which can be printed out from the IRS website.

Choose us for our value, our quality degree and continuing education programs in diverse areas of study, our experienced faculty, and NORTHERN provides students with unique opportunities for academic, personal and professional growth. “You will have personalized attention, something difficult to get at larger colleges. We provide strong hands-on experiences from day one.”
–Dr. Ivan Lopez, Dean, College of Engineering & Technology

The Northern Foundation remains committed to stimulate leadership, promote equity, and grow resources and philanthropy in the Española Valley and surrounding rural areas. Over the past twenty years, we have granted $1.3 million to support over 1,250 NNMC students.